Sous vide bear anyone?

[Karl Blanchard]

Anyone doing this? Internet says perfectly safe. Holding 137° for at least an hour will kill tric. I was gonna do 145° for 3hrs on a backstrap then torch sear. Family is out of town and I've got lots of bear meat so figured if it doesn't work it'll only be me getting sick 

[NRA4LIFE]

Was that specific for bear meat that you read or pork?  I have read where the bear meat tric is a bit tougher critter than the pork tric.

[Karl Blanchard]

Was that specific for bear meat that you read or pork?  I have read where the bear meat tric is a bit tougher critter than the pork tric.

Specific to bears.  Read at least 10 articles that were pretty unanimous on it but I'm still pretty leary 

[KP-Skagit]

I did a bear leg roast at medium rare for like 48 hours hoping I would also soften it up a bit. It was an older tough bear.

I did not get tric, however it was still the toughest cut of meat I have ever had.

[Karl Blanchard]

I did a bear leg roast at medium rare for like 48 hours hoping I would also soften it up a bit. It was an older tough bear.

I did not get tric, however it was still the toughest cut of meat I have ever had.

Interesting. I'm still fairly new to SV so was the cut itself maybe hinder the tenderness? Hinds are usually lean with no connective tissue so typically doesnt break down well vs shoulders and necks? I know in a crock pot or Dutch oven there's no way to make a steak or lean roast acceptable to me vs a hot fast grill to medium rare.  I braised a shoulder roast off this bear last week at 250° for 5hrs for sweet and spicy barbacoa Street tacos. Absolutely amazing.

[Stein]

3 hrs is pretty short for SV, like something I would do for a New York steak that is already tender.  With backstrap, I bet that is good assuming the trich issue is resolved like you mentioned.

Tougher cuts will take much longer than 3 hrs even on moo cows, not to mention game.

If it's not where you want it, simply pack it back up and dunk it for another couple hours, but I bet it's good.

[hunter399]

I always go 160 on my bear summer sausage.
With that said ,I did read on the meat eater website and a few others that 135 is all that is needed.

[Karl Blanchard]

I always go 160 on my bear summer sausage.
With that said ,I did read on the meat eater website and a few others that 135 is all that is needed.

yeah it comes down to holding temp to nuke the tric. With more traditional cooking methods you have to get to 160 to kill it but with SV it's the length of time at temp that kills it. I mean...I read it on the internet so it's gotta be true 

[hunter399]

I always go 160 on my bear summer sausage.
With that said ,I did read on the meat eater website and a few others that 135 is all that is needed.

yeah it comes down to holding temp to nuke the tric. With more traditional cooking methods you have to get to 160 to kill it but with SV it's the length of time at temp that kills it. I mean...I read it on the internet so it's gotta be true 

I no expert.
Probably right.
At my place if it doesn't hit temp ,wife won't eat it.
Making summer sausage tomorrow,then taking it to the deer woods in October.

[Pathfinder101]

 ... following, just to see if you are in shape to make a post tomorrow...

[jrebel]

Had a buddy do moose steaks in a SV and it was the best steak moose steak I have ever eaten.  It was from my big bull that was tougher than a board.  Never done bear but I imagine it would turn out great.   

Everything I have ever read or been told about trichinosis is 135 will kill it.  The problem lies with large pieces of meat and making sure it all hits 135 if your flirting with the lowers end.  This the recommendation to cook to a min 145.   I would think 145 then a hard seat would work out great. 

[mcrawfordaf]

3 hrs is pretty short for SV, like something I would do for a New York steak that is already tender.  With backstrap, I bet that is good assuming the trich issue is resolved like you mentioned.

Tougher cuts will take much longer than 3 hrs even on moo cows, not to mention game.

If it's not where you want it, simply pack it back up and dunk it for another couple hours, but I bet it's good.

Same thoughts on length. We do elk shoulder roasts for 24hrs than sear on the grill and it's butter knife tender.

[KP-Skagit]

I did a bear leg roast at medium rare for like 48 hours hoping I would also soften it up a bit. It was an older tough bear.

I did not get tric, however it was still the toughest cut of meat I have ever had.

Interesting. I'm still fairly new to SV so was the cut itself maybe hinder the tenderness? Hinds are usually lean with no connective tissue so typically doesnt break down well vs shoulders and necks? I know in a crock pot or Dutch oven there's no way to make a steak or lean roast acceptable to me vs a hot fast grill to medium rare.  I braised a shoulder roast off this bear last week at 250° for 5hrs for sweet and spicy barbacoa Street tacos. Absolutely amazing.

I am a SV novice as well but have experimented a decent amount. The person that gave it to me told me cooking longer would make something more tender. After several attempts, I have never had that result. In my experience the cut of meat (and the animal itself) determines how tough it will be and that's that. Aside from the trich consideration, which I have also been told and read, to me its just a foolproof method to get the same end result. The other leg roast got cut up and turned into a great stew.

Sounds like others have had some different experience on the toughness front. Might be the animals. I have only tried with exceptional tough animals that I wasn't going to toss directly in the pan.

[Karl Blanchard]

I did a bear leg roast at medium rare for like 48 hours hoping I would also soften it up a bit. It was an older tough bear.

I did not get tric, however it was still the toughest cut of meat I have ever had.

Interesting. I'm still fairly new to SV so was the cut itself maybe hinder the tenderness? Hinds are usually lean with no connective tissue so typically doesnt break down well vs shoulders and necks? I know in a crock pot or Dutch oven there's no way to make a steak or lean roast acceptable to me vs a hot fast grill to medium rare.  I braised a shoulder roast off this bear last week at 250° for 5hrs for sweet and spicy barbacoa Street tacos. Absolutely amazing.

I am a SV novice as well but have experimented a decent amount. The person that gave it to me told me cooking longer would make something more tender. After several attempts, I have never had that result. In my experience the cut of meat (and the animal itself) determines how tough it will be and that's that. Aside from the trich consideration, which I have also been told and read, to me its just a foolproof method to get the same end result. The other leg roast got cut up and turned into a great stew.

Sounds like others have had some different experience on the toughness front. Might be the animals. I have only tried with exceptional tough animals that I wasn't going to toss directly in the pan.

guess we'll find out here shortly on the bear 

I haven't used the SV for much else besides pork (incredible) and a prime rib I was far too scared to screw up. That rib roast was actually why I bought the SV. Seemed like a dummy proof way to cook it perfectly.  Venison steaks roasts turn out fine but to me it's a more complicated way of just grilling off a steak to medium rare.

I've never bothered doing anything with bear besides various grinded meat products so very curious to eat a bear steak that isn't the texture of a shoe 

[Karl Blanchard]

Had a buddy do moose steaks in a SV and it was the best steak moose steak I have ever eaten.  It was from my big bull that was tougher than a board.  Never done bear but I imagine it would turn out great.   

Everything I have ever read or been told about trichinosis is 135 will kill it.  The problem lies with large pieces of meat and making sure it all hits 135 if your flirting with the lowers end.  This the recommendation to cook to a min 145.   I would think 145 then a hard seat would work out great.

I saw a lot of recipes that said 137 but I don't know if I'm that brave so I'll go 145 to be "safe" 😬

What's your experience on moose meat? Seems like it's all over the board on tenderness. Guys shoot young bulls that are tough and others that are tender. Same goes for old bulls. You notice any correlation between age and toughness? I've eaten zero moose so my experience is exactly zero.

[jrebel]

Had a buddy do moose steaks in a SV and it was the best steak moose steak I have ever eaten.  It was from my big bull that was tougher than a board.  Never done bear but I imagine it would turn out great.   

Everything I have ever read or been told about trichinosis is 135 will kill it.  The problem lies with large pieces of meat and making sure it all hits 135 if your flirting with the lowers end.  This the recommendation to cook to a min 145.   I would think 145 then a hard seat would work out great.

I saw a lot of recipes that said 137 but I don't know if I'm that brave so I'll go 145 to be "safe" 😬

What's your experience on moose meat? Seems like it's all over the board on tenderness. Guys shoot young bulls that are tough and others that are tender. Same goes for old bulls. You notice any correlation between age and toughness? I've eaten zero moose so my experience is exactly zero.

We have lived on moose for the last 4 years.  The three moose we have killed have ran the age spectrum.....2 yo, 3/4 yo, and 6+ yo bulls.  There is a notable difference in how tender they are based on age.   The 2 yo bull is one of the best game animals I have ever eaten.  The old bull was very tasty...but definitely a lot tougher.  We ended up taking all our moose roast on the old bull and making jerky.  Canadians make a lot of minute steak (we know it as cube steak) out of their old bulls for a reason.  Like any game meat that is over cooked, it will turn into shoe leather.  Medium / medium rare is the only way to eat moose.  All my hunting buddies say that moose is the best game meat, from a flavor standpoint, they have ever eaten.  So...to answer your question.....the is a definite correlation between age and toughness. 

Funny note on the young bull that was killed last year by my son.  He had eaten my two older bulls prior to killing this one.  He said, "Dad....after I kill a trophy bull...I will only kill young ones because they taste better.      But I do want a trophy bull first!!..." 

[wheels1]

Saw a guy on YouTube do that on with roast

[pianoman9701]

Let us know how it comes out. I'm betting it'll be tough.

[Karl Blanchard]

Let us know how it comes out. I'm betting it'll be tough.

couple more hours and I'll have a report. Honestly I'm not overly concerned about tenderness. Mainly concerned with it not tasting like a dried up shoe 

[logola512c]

Had a buddy do moose steaks in a SV and it was the best steak moose steak I have ever eaten.  It was from my big bull that was tougher than a board.  Never done bear but I imagine it would turn out great.   

Everything I have ever read or been told about trichinosis is 135 will kill it.  The problem lies with large pieces of meat and making sure it all hits 135 if your flirting with the lowers end.  This the recommendation to cook to a min 145.   I would think 145 then a hard seat would work out great.

There's a lot of info on the web about using a sous vide to pasteurize meat.  It all comes down to temperature.  The lower the temperature, the longer the meat needs to be at that temperature. And that refers to the center of the piece of meat being at that temperature.  The thicker the piece of meat, the longer it takes to get the center to that temperature.  Table 5.1 at this link ( https://douglasbaldwin.com/sous-vide.html#Table_5.1   ) has pasteurization cooking times based on the thickness of the cut, and the desired cooking temperature.  I've done this for bear backstrap, and enjoyed a fully pasteurized medium-rare 134.5 degree treat.   

[Karl Blanchard]

Well dinner didn't suck! Ended up letting it go 4hrs. Perfect 140°. Opted for a 600° grill for the sear. Sliced, Maldon flake salt to finish.  Very tender with great flavor.

[LDennis24]

Look's pretty good! And I'm not a fan of bear meat.

[Pinetar]

If the family is out of town you should be eating that Bear meat in Cory's Elk camp, just saying

[wheels1]

Looks pretty tasty.

[hunter399]

Well dinner didn't suck! Ended up letting it go 4hrs. Perfect 140°. Opted for a 600° grill for the sear. Sliced, Maldon flake salt to finish.  Very tender with great flavor.

Tasty
Looks good.👍

[pianoman9701]

Well dinner didn't suck! Ended up letting it go 4hrs. Perfect 140°. Opted for a 600° grill for the sear. Sliced, Maldon flake salt to finish.  Very tender with great flavor.

Nice looking board. 

[nwwanderer]

Nice!!  Have not tried the water bath for game, that needs to change.  On the moose, have eaten a whole one and tested several others.  As stated age is a big deal but not the whole story.  If they are on the gain at harvest, age as a factor can go out the window.  If any of them are in poor condition it can be a big negative.  My goto is always taste test before processing.

[Pathfinder101]

12 Hours later...
 
Karl...?

[Angry Perch]

That looks great. I would have zero concerns about tric. There is no better way to ensure a consistent temp, and at 145, those bugs are dead.

[Stein]

12 Hours later...
 
Karl...?

I think trich takes a couple weeks to show itself, what's the min temp for salmonella?

[jrebel]

What Sous Vide unit is everyone using???  I'm gonna get me one and start experimenting. 

[Karl Blanchard]

  good to go boys.....well so far  😬

[Pathfinder101]

good to go boys.....well so far  😬

 

[logola512c]

What Sous Vide unit is everyone using???  I'm gonna get me one and start experimenting.

Unless you just have a bunch of money to spare, I would go simple.  I use a basic Anova one that clamps to the side of a large soup pot.  A lot of them have bluetooth compatability, etc., which is unnecessary.  With Sous Vide you just set the temperature and leave it for the desired length of time.  And unless you are planning to sous vide something really big, a clamp on one and a big pot work fine.  Something like this one, although you can find it cheaper on Amazon, and especially if you can find one without the wifi and bluetooth.

https://us.anovaculinary.com/products/anova-red-precision-cooker-120v-us?variant=41001763012772&currency=USD&adnet=u&gclid=Cj0KCQjw7KqZBhCBARIsAI-fTKLBb1mJOSSpYx9cWmt0yk57KPb4ZNq1J0LskOzciXlTXwLNuU6hrOsaAtSAEALw_wcB

[NRA4LIFE]

We have a Gourmia, 1200W version.  I would go 1000W minimum.  Started out with an 800W and it was a bit lame.